bha1980

The 2010 GLK was 'officially' released in '09 but for '13, there's already a new body style. I know it's more of a 'refresh' but the differences are more than subtle. I like my '10 exterior much better but the new interior is definitely a huge improvement.

Same goes for the E; 2010 was released in late '09 but for '14, new body. Judging from the spyshots I saw, it's a significant refresh (or is this a totally new body?!). I like the quad lights much better than the uni-lights. It's a defining feature of the E-class. It looks more like a '12 C from the front.

I honestly think that this brings down the value of the brand. The W210 was around for 6-7 years and so was the W211. Of course there were subtle changes in between but nothing major IMO (eg. tail lights were updated).

I think a refresh pretty much means that the new generation will come out in the next couple of years.

Do you think that this is a new trend for MB? One of the reasons that these cars hold their values is the lifeline of a particular gen. And for me, I would always want to drive the newest body although I know many really don't care either way.

MBNA109

In the 21st century if you don't reinvent, you are dead.

mbzusr

I agree that the cycle is too fast if major changes happen too quickly. W124 Stuck around for over a decade. Still looks good out there because of the craftmanship and engineering underneath. The E34 on the BMW side was a great looking run as well.

bha1980

The W126 was around for more than a decade too. Even though models these days have relatively shorter lifespans, I would still think that one would not change for at least 6-7 years (ML W164-6 years, even the current C will be around until 2014 which will make it around 6 years, plus all the other MBs).

It's not like even the models are selling poorly; I see the current gen E and GLK all around Seoul and in Vancouver and Toronto.

N91K

The '13 GLK is just a facelift, in 2015 the new generation is coming out. That is how mercedes work they change the car within 6-7.

bha1980

Yeah, I know, it's just that I think the GLK facelift is more drastic than others like the '10 C-class to '11 (very subtle changes to the lights). If the '14 E-class is just a facelift too, that's pretty drastic as well.

N91K

Yeah true, the E class was released 2010 so I'm guessing this is just a facelift!

phil17

Had a chance to check out a 2013 the other day. the "goodness" of the GLK remains but some of the changes are not for the better. I noticed:

a) the car doesn't beep anymore when lock/unlock
b) the MB turn signal swopped places? what's the deal with that
c) i like the front fog lights on my 2010 even if i only need it 2 or 3 times a year
d) The changes are "stylish" but very Audi superficial and the new MB styling direction will age much faster than before.
e) column shifter? gee, reminds me of my first car (CRV)


still a great car though. Can't wait for the next gen as all i really need is a little bit more space. lol

bha1980

I agree with d). I prefer the sharp angular lines of the 'current' gen. The new design looks nice but it's too 'swoopy' (if that's the right term).

After driving my sister-in-law's ML, I kind of like the column-shifter though. It's not like one of those clunky old-school ones and I don't know what it is, I just like the feel of the electronic column.